


Binary

by DarkJediQueen



Series: A Universe of Meetings [4]
Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Genderfluid Character, Genderfluid Spencer, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-23
Updated: 2015-09-23
Packaged: 2018-04-23 01:12:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4857566
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkJediQueen/pseuds/DarkJediQueen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Aaron's feeling conflicted about his relationship with Beth. Still he's shocked when he meets Doctor Penny Reid and he's attracted to her. Then he meets Spencer at a café and he's really not sure what's wrong with him. Why was he attracted to two people at the same time?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Binary

**Author's Note:**

> **Beta** : Charlie_Remington

Aaron Hotchner met Penny when he was trying to find an obscure book to check a passage out of. Garcia found a copy in the Library of Congress but it was in the Antiquities department and so he had to go there himself to look at it. Thankfully the case was in upper Maryland so it didn't take long to drive to DC. 

"I need the Antiquities department please," Aaron asked as he moved to the front desk where a very stern lady sat. She looked up at him and then saw his displayed badge. 

"Oh, yes. Doctor Reid told me you'd be coming. Third elevator on the right, you want the sub basement." She pointed to the elevator and Aaron moved over to it. The elevator was small and cramped but sturdy. He could see the obvious cameras and figured there were a few not so obvious ones as well. He knew little about the Antiquities Department of the Library of Congress but what he did know is that the curator of that department was in charge of some of the rarest and most expensive books on the planet. 

Aaron had spoken with Doctor Reid on the phone and she had been very no nonsense about the fact that even though it was for a case and he needed it quick, no courier was taking the manuscript out of the Library of Congress. He expected to see a woman in her fifties, graying hair in a bun and severe glasses on her face. Instead Doctor Reid was young with a mess of beautiful brown hair in ringlets on her head. She had a pair of beautiful green glasses. He knew it was her because her nametag said her name was Doctor Penny Reid. Her eyes were a soft brown and Aaron nearly lost himself in them. She was as tall as him if not taller and when she walked he couldn't hear the clack of heels. When she moved out from behind the main desk area Aaron saw she was wearing flats. That was also when he saw fully what she was wearing. The shirt was a button up in a soft purple color and the skirt was a dark gray. She was thin but not to the point of looking starved. She was beautiful to him. 

The immediate attraction to her shocked Aaron. He and Beth had been on the rocks but he enjoyed being with her. Jack liked her. The distance wasn't bothering him, he was just out of sorts with their relationship. 

Doctor Reid looked up at him. "Can I help you, Sir?"

"Oh. I'm sorry. My name is Aaron Hotchner, I called earlier about a rare manuscript."

"Oh! I have it pulled but you have to wear gloves. You said you were FBI but you never stated what division."

"The BAU. Be...."

"Behavioural Analysis Unit. Agent Hotchner, if you would have said that, I'd have gladly looked up the information you needed. I'm sorry with how I was on the phone but I get calls from Federal Agents all the time that don't feel the need to do their own work. How far away is the case?" Her entire demeanor changed from stiff to relaxed and she starting moving towards a room on the left side. She wiped a card through a reader and ushered him in. There was a box of gloves on the wall and she grabbed out two pairs. 

"Upper Maryland so not too far. I'm sorry I didn't tell you. We are a week into a case and this is the first break we've had."

"I understand Agent Hotchner."

"Aaron," Aaron said in a rush. Doctor Reid looked at him with a strange look on her face. 

"Aaron. I know exactly what the BAU does and who you chase."

"This is a serial rapist and murderer. He keeps leaving clues and we can't figure them out. The clue on the fifth victim is a quote from this book but there are no copies online so our tech analyst found that this is the only intact copy in the United States."

"Do you have the clues with you?" Doctor Reid put her gloves on and opened up the book to the first page. Aaron marveled at how good of condition the book was in. He pulled the paper that Garcia had printed out for him and handed it over. She barely glanced at it before turning back to the book. Aaron wondered if she was just going to look for the first quote. Instead she snapped up a notebook and pen and started to write. The first quote was written out as well as the page number, paragraph number and slew of other numbers. She did this for all five clues without even opening the book past the first page. "I read twenty thousand words per minute and have an eidetic memory. I'm going to be much faster than you at finding the clues in the book as you can see."

Doctor Reid handed over the paper and as soon as Aaron looked at it he knew. The clues left at the scene were so simple, if one had the book it went to. The page number and paragraph number gave the date of the next abduction and that clue was tomorrow's date. 

"Is there anything on that page that could give me a time? The fifth clue leads us to today's date. Is there a time?" 

Doctor Reid turned the pages in the book to the page and looked at it. "What times were the first five victims taken?"

"Three fourteen. One fifty nine. Three oh five. Three fifty eight and ten seventeen." Aaron watched as she started to mutter to herself. When she stopped she bit at her lower lip. Aaron tried to subtly shift as he felt himself start to harden. She wasn't paying attention to him. 

"Taking out the first victim the time of one fifty nine would have been someone near or on the page with the first clue and it's not there. I...I'll think about it and get back to you. I'll give you my card, Aaron and if another victim is taken and found, you can call with the quote and I'll tell you the significance. I'm also going to look through our records to figure out who has accessed this manuscript. I'll gladly help in any way that I can."

"Thank you, Doctor Reid."

"Penny. You can call me Penny." She turned her face away from him and looked down at the book. He could see the blush on her face. Obviously he wasn't the only one affected by their meeting. Aaron emboldened by her reaction, tilted her face up and kissed her cheek. There was a soft scent on her. It smelled like honeysuckle. She inhaled sharply but didn't pull out of his touch. 

"Thank you, Penny. You've been a big help and I'd love to stay but I have to go." Aaron pulled out his business card and handed it over. She took it and he made sure their fingers brushed. Her eyes widened and Aaron smiled. "Your card?"

"Oh! Uh. Yes." Penny stumbled a little as she moved passed him out of the room. She stopped at the desk and leaned over, Aaron couldn't help but watch the way that the skirt tightened over her very cute butt. She turned back with a card in her hand and Aaron stepped up to take it. He brushed their fingers again and then pocketed the card before he pulled her close. He made sure not to wrap his arm around her back, just held her close with her hand. 

"Can I kiss you?" Aaron asked. Penny swallowed and nodded. Aaron cupped the side of her face and pulled her in for a quick chaste kiss on the lips. She sighed as he pulled back. He brushed his thumb across her lips after her tongue darted out to wet them. He needed to get his mind back on the case and he knew it so he stepped back. "I'll call you if we get more quotes and if not, I'll call you when the case is done."

Penny smiled and kissed his thumb that was resting on her lips still. He turned and nearly ran into the bookshelf, stopping just inches short. He felt a blush on his face but he didn't turn back. He didn't want her to see the blush.

XxXxXxX

Aaron had just gotten settled into bed in his hotel room when his phone rang. He looked at the number and didn't recognize it but it had a DC area code so he answered it.

"Hotchner."

"Age...Aaron, it's Penny from the Library of Congress."

"Penny, what's wrong?" Aaron sat up in bed and the sudden movement had his roommate, Dave, sitting up as well.

"I was at home thinking. I wrote down the numbers and that's when it hit me. Pi."

"Pie? What kind of pie?" Aaron wasn't sure if it was his sleep deprived state or it was her that wasn't making sense.

"No. Not pie. Pi. The number. 3.14159, etcetera. If you take each number set of Pi you get the abduction times. Three fourteen. One fifty nine. Two sixty five, if converted is three oh five. Your girl that's going to get abducted will be taken at three twenty three. You never said whether they were taken at the first occurrence of the number in the day or the second. It's now after midnight which means if it's the first, you have under three hours to find her before she's taken."

"Thank you, Penny. Did you find any names on the manuscript?"

"No. All the records over the past sixty years came up empty. Only three people looked at it besides me and you and one is dead, the second lives in England and the third is in jail for money laundering."

"How did you find that out?"

"I've cultivated friends in my time in DC, Aaron." Penny laughed and Aaron promised himself that he was going to make her laugh like that more. It was in that instant that his mind made itself up. He'd felt more attraction to Penny in the short time he'd known her than he had with Beth the entire time he'd known her. There were probably those who would call him an idiot for dumping Beth when he had no clue about Penny but he felt that it was a right decision to make. 

"Thank you so much. I'll come see you as soon as we get back into town. To thank you." Aaron waited for her to say goodbye before he said his own and closed the phone. "The next victim is going to be taken at either three twenty three this morning or this afternoon. We need cops out now!"

"Aaron who was that?"

"The curator of the Antiquities department of the Library of Congress. The times of the abductions are set to the mathematical numbers of Pi."

XxXxXxX

Aaron met Spencer when he was in a coffee shop trying to figure out exactly what to do with Penny. He liked her. He liked her a lot but he also could see where her intelligence could be an asset to the team. Even just on a consulting basis. They'd talked on the phone at the end of the case and he knew her degrees as well as the fact that she had a very high IQ. He was seated at the back corner two person table, sipping at his drip coffee when someone cleared their throat. Aaron looked up at the man. He was wearing slacks and a button down with a sweater vest over it. His hair was long, brushing past his shoulders. He had a messenger bag over his shoulder and a cup of coffee in his hand. He looked to be young.

"Do you mind if I sit down? Everywhere else is full." The man's gaze moved around the place and Aaron looked at his surroundings for the first time. The place was packed. He nodded and the younger man sat down. He held out his hand. "Spencer."

"Aaron." 

Spencer's eyes widened a little in shock but he said nothing. Aaron wondered what that was about. 

"You looked lost in thought there."

"I broke up with a woman I had been seeing. She moved away and we tried but I just wasn't happy anymore."

"Oh. And what prompted it?" 

"I..." Aaron looked up at him. He shook his head. He wasn't baring it all to a stranger. "Sorry. No."

"It's fine. I've never seen you in here before and I frequent here a lot. Did you just move to the area?"

"No. I just noticed this place for the first time a few days ago. I live near here and am shocked I'd never noticed it before."

"I love the coffee here, drip or espresso." Spencer smiled at him and Aaron was shocked that he smiled back. He rarely ever smiled, except around Jack. His eyes were soft and caring. He seemed a little unsure of himself. "Their pastries are also to die for."

"I've not tried anything but the coffee yet."

"Hold on." Spencer slung his bag off his shoulder as he stood and moved away towards the counter. Instead of getting in line, Aaron saw that he moved behind the counter and grabbed a few pastries from the shelves at the back. He slid them onto two plates and smiled at the baristas before moving back towards him. 

"You must frequent here if they let you sneak back and grab food."

"Something like that." Spencer set down one of the plates in front of him and one in front of Aaron. "Try them."

Aaron took a bit of the first pastry. It was soft and flaky and the chocolate creme filling was sweet without being too sweet. He hummed appreciatively as he took a second bite. Spencer smiled at him even wider. His reaction to Spencer smiling like that was the same as when Penny had blushed. What the hell was wrong with him? He looked away to try and clear his head. He'd known since high school that he was bisexual. He'd just never found a man that he wanted more than just a quick round of sex. The attraction to Spencer had to be just that. 

"I saw you badge on your belt earlier. What branch?"

"Department of Justice, FBI." Aaron took another bite of pastry and then a sip of coffee. "What about you?"

"I own this place. I bought it a few years back when the owner wanted to retire. The only thing I had to do was keep it the same. Minor upgrades here and there to keep up with money saving technology like the ordering system and such but other than that, I've not changed anything. The lady who makes the pastries has been doing so for twenty years and her granddaughter is going to college to become a pastry chef and works here to put herself through. I might just have her convinced to stay and replace her grandma."

"So that's why you can just pop behind the counter and steal pastries. How are you not four hundred pounds?" Aaron started on the second pastry, this time it was filled with some kind of strawberry creme. He wasn't sure which he liked better.

"Self restraint and the ability to forget to eat."

"Forget to eat?" Aaron asked. He sometimes had little time to eat while on cases but forgetting to eat? That he'd never really done.

"I love to read and sometimes if I'm in a good book, I can forget to eat. I usually remember the next morning and eat a good breakfast before stopping in here." Spencer blushed as he admitted it and then took a bite of his second pastry. A little bit of the filling popped out and he licked at the side of his mouth. His second pastry had some light brown filling inside of it. He wasn't able to get all of it and Aaron found himself reaching out with his finger and scraping it off his skin. He debated for only a few seconds about what to do before he brought his finger to his own mouth and licking the filling off. He locked his eyes with Spencer's as did. The filing was coffee flavored. That explained the light brown color it had. He didn't know what he was doing. Spencer's eyes widened then darkened and he licked his lips before swallowing. 

"I...I need to go," Spencer said before he grabbed his bag and bolted. Aaron jumped up from the table but Spencer went through the staff area and into the back before he could even follow him. He couldn't believe he'd been so stupid. He'd done something to make him uncomfortable. His head was all over the place and he wasn't sure what he wanted. He wondered if he wasn't going through a midlife crisis.

The ringing of his phone had him sitting back down in his seat. Spencer had left his coffee and his pastry sitting on the table. Aaron looked at his cell phone. It was Penny.

"Hotchner."

"Aaron?" Penny sounded out of breath. 

"Penny? What's wrong? Why are you out of breath?"

"I know we were going to meet at the restaurant but something has come up and I think it would be best if we met at my apartment first. I'll text you the address, if that's fine with you."

"Of course. What's wrong?" Aaron had only talked to her a handful of times and they'd only kissed the once but he could tell that something was wrong. 

"It's something that we need to talk about in person. I don't want to do it over the phone. Please, Aaron don't push me." Penny took a deep breath and exhaled. "Please say you'll come over."

"I'll be at your place at six. How does that sound?"

"I'll see you then." Penny hung up without saying goodbye. Aaron was worried that something was wrong. They'd not even gone out on their first date. He looked at his watch. It was just after four. He'd have to head home and get ready to be at her place by six. The ding of his phone told him that her address had been texted to him. He looked at it. She lived pretty close to him. Just a few blocks over in fact. 

Aaron went home and showered to get ready. It was hard to keep his thoughts away from what could be wrong. He had the day off from work and Jack was staying with Jessica so that he could go on the date with Penny. Jessica was actually pretty happy for him. She'd been confused about Beth but he explained it all and she supported him calling Penny for the date. He wanted to feel upset about Spencer but he wasn't. He'd asked Penny on a date but they were not exclusive. 

Time ticked closer to six and Aaron started to get nervous. He ended up outside Penny's apartment complex fifteen minutes early. He sat in his car for about five minutes before he decided he couldn't sit there anymore. The doorman let him in and he moved right towards the elevator. He hoped she wouldn't be upset that he was early. He knocked on her door and listened. The sound of the door unlocking was quicker than he thought. 

Penny opened the door and Aaron thought that she was beautiful. She wore light makeup and a very pretty blue dress. Her hair was in the ringlets again but her face. Her face was unreadable. Aaron was on edge.

"Would you like to come in?" Penny stepped back and Aaron stepped inside. He looked around the apartment and it was nothing like what he thought it would be. Oh, there were books everywhere but there was a good bit of memorabilia from various movies and TV shows around as well. "I know that you are probably worried but it's nothing you've done. Not really. I just didn't think that the middle of the coffee shop was a place to discuss this."

"Coffee shop?" Aaron turned to look at her. Had she been there? How did he miss her?

"I...This date with you is one of the first I've accepted since college. You seemed to...I don't know how to do this."

"Penny, I'm sorry for what you saw in the coffee shop. I don't..."

"You don't...please Aaron. Just let me talk," Penny begged. Aaron stopped; she was nervous. He could read it in every single line of her body. She moved to the kitchen area of the apartment and picked up a glass of water to take a sip. "You study human behavior. It's what you do for a living. I just assumed that you recognized me."

Penny's voice changed. It lost its softness and turned slightly deeper. She turned back to him. "I wasn't born Penny. Penny is a nickname."

The voice! Aaron placed it then. He looked at her, stepping closer. She didn't shy away, didn't flinch, even though she looked nervous. He reached up and gently grabbed the edges of her glasses and pulled them off. He could see it now. He couldn't believe that he'd missed it before. He slid the glasses back on and then ran his thumb down her throat. He could feel the adam's apple on her throat as she swallowed. Penny was very trusting, his hand was right where he could seriously hurt her. 

"You are very beautiful as Penny. You came up to me because you thought I knew. How would I know?" Aaron asked. She wasn't looking at him but he wasn't going to force that right at the moment. 

"I gave you my card. I figured you'd at least do a rudimentary look up of me."

"Your card...It says Spencer doesn't it?" Aaron hadn't even looked at it as she'd called him and he'd just programmed her number in his phone from that. Her card was tucked away in his go bag in the trunk of his car. 

"Spencer is rare as a girl's name but it does pop up. My bosses were willing to give me cards that said Penny as well as Spencer but I declined." Penny finally looked up at him. The nervousness was lessening in her eyes. He lowered her hand to let his thumb rub at the base of her neck. She shivered. "I was going to tell you before dinner. My plan was to get there before you and wait outside. Then you showed up at the shop and you looked so lost in thought. Then you..." 

Aaron knew what she was talking about. He'd hit on Spencer. Tilting her face up using his thumb, Aaron kissed her. It wasn't quick and it wasn't chaste. He licked his way into her mouth when she gasped. Her hands gripped his jacket and she held on as he all but devoured her mouth. When he needed to breath he pulled back. She tasted better than he thought she would. He'd tasted the coffee and figured that since she'd bought a coffee place, she probably drank a lot of the stuff. Penny's eyes were dazed. He smiled. 

"I have never been attracted to anyone as quickly as I was you. Then today I met Spencer and the attraction was there as well. I didn't know what to do." Aaron let his hand slid down her arm to her hip. "So genderfluid. Obviously I've come across genderfluid people in an academic way but I've never actually met one. I have no problems dating you, as male or female."

"You...you don't?" Penny asked, smiling at him. He could see Spencer in that smile. He could see now how he missed it. The hair and the glasses threw him off a great deal as well as the style of clothes. There was so much hope in her eyes. 

"I kissed you as Penny and would have probably kissed you as Spencer if you hadn't had a mini freak out and ran. I can't exactly get upset can I? You are correct that in the middle of a crowded café was not the time or the place to get into a discussion like that. You look lovely tonight. I've not said that yet. I will say though that I think I like that other skirt on you better." Aaron let his fingers brush the swell of her butt. "It made your butt look really cute."

"Aaron." Penny shoved at him enough to be playful but not hard enough to actually push him away. He caught her hand and kissed her knuckles. 

"I don't want to hurt you, Penny. If I do something that makes you upset, please tell me. I can do all the research in the world and don't worry I'm going to but it all boils down to everyone is different. You have to tell me what makes you comfortable and uncomfortable."

"Okay." Penny smiled at him like he'd told her the best news in the world and that kind of broke his heart a little. He was probably the first person that wanted her as she was that she'd ever met, as Penny or as Spencer without making them feel like a freak. He promised himself that he would do whatever she needed to make her feel happy.

Two Months Later  
Aaron smiled as he entered the bullpen after a late lunch with Spencer. His boyfriend had met him at a restaurant not far from the academy. The team had heard Dave asking him about Penny after the case in Maryland two months before and so when he mentioned any dates around them, it was always with the name of Penny. His significant other wasn't ready to meet the team and he wasn't going to tell them about his genderfluidness before then. 

Dave was sitting his his office, waiting on him. The look on his face was not a good one. It was the look he wore when someone disappointed him. He wondered what had happened to make Dave upset.

"Dave, what's wrong?" Aaron asked.

"Did you have a good lunch?" Dave was looking him in the eye. Staring in him the eye. Looking for signs of something. 

"I had a wonderful lunch." Aaron was confused. 

"I thought things were serious with Penny."

Aaron sighed and turned to shut his office door. He moved to sit in the chair beside where Dave was sitting. 

"Things are very serious with Penny."

"Then why are you out to lunch with a man? Kissing a man?" Dave demanded. 

"This was something that I was going to discuss with the team at a later date when things were more settled. I met Penny first but Penny is just a nickname. Since you had brought her up in front of the team I kept using that name. Penny was born Spencer Reid and remains a male in body type. He's genderfluid. I met Penny and then I met Spencer. Today, you saw Spencer."

"You know, I sat here for the past half an hour trying to figure out why you would cheat on Penny. I did not expect...I never thought you would be the one to surprise me like that. Genderfluid. When did she...tell you that?"

"After I hit on Spencer just before my date with her." 

Dave's eyebrows raised and Aaron started to tell him the whole story from meeting Penny up to the end of their first date. Dave smiled at that. "You really are a surprise on that. So when are we going to meet her?"

"I'm one of the first people other than her mother to accept Spencer for the way he is. Male pronouns are fine. Spencer is not that picky."

"You said he is a genius. Sounds to me like he'd be a good person to be on the team. I remember the case he helped us on. Minimal information and helped save the final victim before she was taken."

"Spencer told me that he applied and went through the academy before he figured out that he couldn't go through without being Penny. He was earmarked for the BAU until a day after graduation he quit."

"Really? And you want to what, talk him into joining again? You know the team would have no issues with him or her but what about the LEOs?"

"I've thought about it and I think I found a nice compromise. The only issue is our relationship. Spencer would rather stay away than not be with me."

"You know that I am all for bucking the fraternization policy and Aaron you can't tell me that you would do anything different when it comes to him in the field than you would the rest of the team. There is a probation period. We discuss everything with the team and if at the end of the probation period, they feel that they can't work with him, he's off the team."

"First, I've got to talk to Spencer. It's going to be a while though. Linton's rotation isn't over for six months and requalification shouldn't take long."

"You made mention of degrees once. Plural."

"Four PhDs and Spencer just finished a fifth BA. After leaving the FBI he went and got a PhD in Psychology focusing on human sexuality and gender. There isn't a topic that I bring up that he doesn't know something about."

"How does Jack like him?"

"I've not introduced them yet. Spencer is a little hesitant, something about children not liking him. We have a date at my place tonight, case willing, and I'm going to kind of force the issue. Jack knows that there is someone in my life and I've been kind of preparing him for the fact that some days Spencer looks different. Jessica knows the entire truth. She met him as Penny and they get along well. Jessica is going to fake an emergency and drop Jack off not long after Spencer gets there tonight."

"And you don't think he's going to see though that?" Dave's eyebrow raised up so high that it looked like it was trying to escape his face. 

"I'm sure he's going to but I hope to distract him long enough he doesn't make a run for it. Jack will be helpful in keeping him there. He's going through a question phase."

Dave laughed and they discussed the plans for the rest of the day with the team. Aaron made sure to leave the office with plenty of time to get ready. Spencer had known about Jack from their first date. He hadn't kept that from him. It wasn't hard to figure out that Spencer was worried about Jack's reaction to him. His son was opened minded though and he thought that meeting Jack would go a long way in getting Spencer to agree to meet the team. He sent off a text that he was heading home and that Spencer could come over anytime that he wanted. They didn't set any plans other than eating and watching a movie.

Aaron entered his apartment to find Jack on the couch working on homework and Jessica was pacing in the kitchen. She looked up at him in relief.

"You cursed me. I really do have a work emergency." Jessica kissed his cheek and then she was gone. Jack was still just focusing on his homework. 

"Jack, buddy. Do you think you could come here?" Aaron sat down at the table and turned towards where Jack came running at him. He picked his son up and set him on the table so they could see eye to eye. "Do you remember how I told you I wasn't dating Beth anymore."

"Yes. You are dating Penny now."

"Yes, well Penny is coming over to eat with us tonight and she doesn't know that you are going to be here. She's not used to kids." Aaron stopped and thought. He'd seen Spencer at lunch but that didn't always mean that Spencer was who was going to show up at their dates. "Now Penny is a little bit different than Beth."

"That's because Spencer likes to feel pretty."

Aaron's mouth dropped open. He looked at his son but there was nothing on his face that gave away a single thing.

"Where did you hear that?" Aaron was shocked. Jessica said that Jack was never around when they discussed Spencer. 

"Spencer came over one night to give you something for that case you were working on a consult for. I heard him and then I saw you kiss him. Then you talked about the dress he wore the night before. I asked Jimmy's mommy about it because she's a head doctor and she told me that he was...it had something to do with water."

"Genderfluid."

"THAT!" Jack smiled wide and jumped in happiness. "You called him Spencer and then talked about him looking pretty in the dress and I put two and two together. Is that why Spencer is worried about meeting me? I won't make fun of him or her. I promise. I bet it's fun. I don't like dresses but girls do and some girls look very pretty in dresses and pants. I bet Spencer is pretty in a dress."

"Yes, Penny is very pretty in a dress. Do you want to see?" Aaron pulled Jack into his lap and settled back in the chair, bringing up his phone. He'd taken several pictures of Spencer and many of Penny on their dates. All of them were in a locked folder on his phone. He unlocked it and let Jack scroll through the pictures. 

"Penny is very pretty. Who is coming over tonight?" Jack asked as he handed the phone back over. 

"I don't know. I told Spencer when we started dating that I never cared to know who I was going to be taking on a date. So it's a surprise each time!" 

"You're funny, daddy. Can I go make Spencer a picture?" Jack looked up at him with hope filled eyes and nodded. His son gave him a quick hug and then he was off like a rocket to his bedroom. Aaron smiled at the happiness and acceptance of his son. After the childhood he'd had, he promised his children would never have to face fear at anything. Coming out as gay, trans, or anything. It was another reason that he'd worked so hard to get into the BAU. 

A knock on his door shocked him out of his thinking. He knew the knock. Spencer was predictable and always knocked the same way. He stood up from the table and took a deep breath, hoping that Spencer wasn't upset with Jack being there. He opened the door and smiled. Spencer was standing there with a shy smile on his face. His messenger bag was hanging from his shoulder while his hand held a bag. Aaron grabbed the bag from his hand as he stepped back to allow him into the apartment. 

"What's in the bag?" Aaron asked as he set it down on the table that he set his go bag down on when he brought it home before taking it to the bedroom. Spencer pulled his messenger bag off and hung it on the coat rack. 

Before Spencer could answer, running feet sounded in the hall and Jack stopped when he saw Spencer. The boys face lit up and he ran right to Spencer and hugged him around his legs.

"Spencer. You're here!" 

Spencer didn't answer he just looked at Aaron in shock and there was hesitance there. His eyes flicked to the bag and Aaron knew exactly what was in the bag. He let out a quick chuckle and grabbed the bag before Spencer could.

"Jack, can you keep Spencer entertained while I put up his overnight bag?" He used the word overnight on purpose and watched the blush creep onto Spencer's face. He'd gotten it right.

"Sure, daddy!" Jack pulled back from the hug and grabbed Spencer's hand and all but dragged him into the living room area to sit on the couch. 

When Aaron set the bag down on the bed, he took a moment to get his thoughts under control. He'd invited Spencer to his apartment for a date, something he'd never done before. Spencer had brought over an overnight bag. It was a not so subtle hint. Aaron was his first relationship of any meaning and while Spencer had never outright said a thing about it, he was pretty sure that the younger man was telling him without telling him that he was a virgin. He moved to his bedside drawer and checked the condoms and the lube. There was plenty of lube and the condoms were in date. Jack knew not to enter his bedroom when the door was shut without knocking. Jack had been young when he and Haley had split but he'd never hid his sex life with Beth from him. Jack had never seen them having sex but he knew that adult things happened when two adults slept in a bed. 

"Dad!" Jack's feet were running towards him and only the happiness in his voice stopped Aaron from running to meet him. Aaron still shut his bedroom door as Jack rounded the corner. The boy was holding a quarter in his hand. "DAD! Spencer's a magician! He pulled this from my ear!"

The man in question walked around the corner at a much slower pace. Aaron dropped to his knee to look at the quarter in question. 

"That's awesome. Although if he pulled that from your ear that means you aren't washing it well enough when you take a bath." Aaron laughed as Jack laughed. He picked up Jack as he stood up. "What do you want for dinner, buddy?"

"Spencer's the guest. He picks." Jack turned to look at Spencer. "What do you want for dinner?"

Spencer blushed and ducked his head. He was overwhelmed and Aaron could tell.

"How about Spencer and I discuss dinner and you finish that picture in your room for a few minutes?" 

Jack nodded and moved to his bedroom the second that Aaron set him down. He pulled the door shut which told Aaron that he didn't want anyone to see what he was working on. He chuckled at the door before stepping up to Spencer and cupping his cheek. He wrapped an arm around his waist and pulled him even closer, kissing him. It took a minute before Spencer started to kiss him back. 

"You were good with him," Aaron said as he pulled back and rested his forehead against Spencer's. "Jack's easy, Spencer. You coming over two weeks ago woke him up. He heard us discussing the dress you'd worn to dinner and in the way only a child can, put two and two together. His friend Jimmy's mother is a psychologist and he asked her about it. I guess she explained it to him. He thinks you are very pretty as Penny."

"Very...when did he see me?" Spencer asked, his voice low. 

"I showed him pictures of you I've taken on my phone, as both Spencer and Penny. He accepts you as you are, Spencer. I told you that he would. I know my son and I know what I've been raising him to be."

"I know. I just...kids can be mean."

"Jack likes you. If when you wake up tomorrow, you want to be Penny, he's not going to care. I saw the makeup bag in the end of the overnight bag."

"Oh, I'm not staying..." 

Aaron stopped him with a kiss. It wasn't anything like the one he'd just given him. This kiss was meant to excite them both. He dropped his hands to grab Spencer's hips and pull him close. Spencer gasped and Aaron took advantage of the open mouth and tangled their tongues. Spencer's hand settled around his neck, pulling him close, making sure he couldn't step back. He wasn't going to ask if Spencer was sure. He'd have never brought an overnight bag if he'd been unsure. He was ready to make that step with him. 

"You are staying the night. Beth stayed over on occasion. Jack knows what to do and not to do. Don't pull back, Spencer. Please. I'm sorry about just dropping Jack on you but you've managed to get out of every meeting I've set up over the past month. Jack already adores you."

"Okay."

"Okay?" Aaron asked. Spencer turned his face up with a smile on it. He kissed Aaron's lips and nodded. "Good. Jack likes pancakes for breakfast so I hope that's fine with you."

"Pancakes are fine. Really I just need coffee and I'll be fine."

"Then it's a good thing my boyfriend has got me to like the beans that his place roasts and that when I wake up in the mornings I like to drink his kind of coffee."

Spencer laughed and pulled him back into a kiss. Aaron let him dictate the kiss but didn't let it get heavy. Dinner still had to be decided and a movie picked out.

The evening flew by with Jack asking question after question about whatever popped into his head and seeing how more relaxed Spencer got with Jack over the course of the evening warmed his heart. He'd been pretty sure he was in love with the shy man for a few weeks but seeing him with his son, just told Aaron that he was. He loved Penny as much as he loved Spencer. He could see them making a life together. He wanted to make a life with him.

Jack was settled into bed and Aaron had left Spencer in the living room. The second that Aaron had stood up with a sleeping Jack in his arms, Spencer had gotten nervous. He wasn't shocked so he gave him the time he needed to get himself under control. Instead of going back to the living room, Aaron sidetracked to his bedroom, the door left open. Spencer's bag was settled in the bathroom attached to his bedroom and then he waited on the foot of the bed for Spencer to come to him. His jacket had been lost long ago and he'd taken his tie off at dinner. 

Aaron didn't have to wait long. Spencer hesitantly walked into the room after about five minutes. He shut the door and leaned on it. His eyes scanned the room. Aaron waited for his eyes to come back to him before he stood up and made his way across the room to him. He reached out and cupped his face, pulling him into a kiss. 

"I want you, Aaron," Spencer breathed against his lips.

"Then it's as simple as that. You make me happier than I have been in a very long time, Spencer. There is just me and you in this relationship. We do what we want, not what we think others will understand. What do you want?" Aaron kissed across his jaw and down his neck. Spencer pulled his body closer to him with his shirt. 

"I want you in me. I want to feel you moving inside of me, Aaron. Please."

"Your wish is my command." Aaron started to work on Spencer's buttons on his shirt. He felt hands at his pants and smiled into the kiss he placed on Spencer's neck. He went with the pace that the younger man set. He knew that sometimes it was better to get scary things over with. He trusted Aaron but baring oneself to another person when one never had could be frightening. As they slowly stripped each other, Aaron walked backwards to the bed. 

Spencer was panting and hard as rock when Aaron pushed him onto the bed. His eyes were half lidded and Aaron couldn't wait to slide inside of him. The younger man pushed himself up the bed a little so that Aaron could lay down on top of him. His hands reached and pulled until Aaron was draped the way he wanted. Aaron had done research and was fairly certain he knew the best way to make this a wonderful experience for him. 

Body excited and anticipating, Aaron knew that he wouldn't last long once he got inside of him. He grabbed the lube and the condom from the drawer at the bedside. Spencer took the condom from him and laid it back in the drawer and shut it. 

"I want to feel you. I know that I am clean and I know you are."

Aaron surged up and kissed him, hard. While he did that he popped open the lid on the lube and covered three of his fingers. He started to kiss down Spencer's neck again, not stopping at his collar bone and instead he kept going down. He sucked a hickey into the juncture of hip and thigh as he rubbed a finger against the younger man's entrance. Spencer stilled but said nothing as Aaron pressed his finger inside. He could feel the muscles tighten to keep him out and then nearly all at once relax again. 

"There you go." Aaron rubbed his free hand against Spencer's side as he panted through what Aaron knew to be a weird feeling. Pulling out a little, Aaron thrust his digit back inside a few times before he pulled it nearly all the way out and then shoved it back in.

"More."

"Okay." Aaron pulled his finger free and gently pushed back in with two fingers. He waited for Spencer's eyes to close when he brushed against his prostate before he licked at the underside of the cock in front of him. Eyes snapped open and his head shot up to look at Aaron as he took him in his mouth. Thankfully, Spencer wasn't expecting a perfect blow job. Aaron had never given one but he knew enough about what he liked so he hoped that it would at least be enjoyable for his lover. Lover. A new term to add to the growing list that they shared between them. 

When he had Spencer stretched as much as he could with two fingers, he pulled free and breached him with three. He applied more suction to the cock in his mouth and brushed against the younger man's prostate on every thrust of his fingers, waiting for what he knew would be coming.

Spencer was panting and moaning. His hands tangled in the sheets under him. 

"Aaron, I'm...Oh God." 

Aaron pulled back as he knew what Spencer was trying to say. Keeping the head in his mouth, he waited, gripping the base of Spencer's cock with his lubed hand and stroking Spencer through orgasm. He swallowed down the younger man's release and when he was sure that he was done, he let the softening cock pop from his mouth. He crawled back up the sweaty body and wiped his fingers on the bed before he claimed Spencer's panting mouth in a kiss. He thrust his hard and aching cock against Spencer's crotch and felt his body shake. 

"Are you ready for me?" Aaron asked. He grabbed the lube but Spencer took it from him and poured some out before closing the cap and dropping it off the side of the bed. He pulled Aaron down into a kiss as he spread the lube on his cock. He groaned into the kiss and dropped his head down to lay on Spencer's shoulder. He had to grab the genius's hand to stop him from getting him off too soon. "Sorry. I'm a lot closer to coming than I would like to be and that is not helping."

"Sorry." Spencer didn't sound the least bit sorry though and Aaron couldn't help but laugh. 

"You need to keep quiet so if you start to get loud, please scream into a pillow."

Spencer laughed and shifted, rubbing his groin against Aaron's cock, reminding him what the goal of this was. 

"You are very pushy."

"You be a thirty one year old virgin, Aaron and tell me that you'd not be pushy." 

"You aren't going to be a virgin for much longer." Aaron settled back between his legs and aligned himself with Spencer's hole. He pushed in the head of his cock slowly, watching Spencer's face the entire time. He watched for pain but there was none so he pushed in a little farther. He kept up the slow pace until he was fully inside of him. Leaning over, he kissed Spencer's chest and rubbed at his hip with the hand he wasn't braced on. He kept his eyes on Spencer's face and knew when the pressure of their joining became something he was used to. He stayed still just a little longer than he knew that Spencer needed because if he didn't he was going to come before he got his lover off again. 

"Aaron, please," Spencer begged as he opened his eyes. Aaron nodded and pulled out a little to thrust back inside of him. 

"You are beautiful, Spencer. All laid out under me. My no longer virgin lover."

"Aaron." Spencer pushed back on that thrust and Aaron shifted his grip from rubbing to holding onto Spencer's hip, helping them meet thrust for thrust. He kissed, bit, and licked every inch of skin that he could get his mouth on as he thrust inside of Spencer again and again. His lover pulled him closer and closer until he was bent nearly in half and they could kiss. The hitch in breathing told Aaron that Spencer was close. He pulled back so that he could take Spencer in hand to get him off. It was only a few pumps and Spencer was clenching around him and his released splattered his own belly. The tightening around his own cock was too much and Aaron followed after him. He carefully pulled out, checking for blood and finding none. He knew that he was careful but that didn't always mean anything. 

Spencer pulled him down into a sloppy kiss. "I'm glad I waited for you."

"Don't say things like that, Spencer," Aaron said as he pulled Spencer to him, not caring about the stickiness on his own stomach from where Spencer pulled him down to kiss him. Aaron spooned around his lover, knowing that they'd need to get up and clean up. Spencer had his contacts to take out. "When you say things like that it makes my chest tighten."

"I mean it though. I never thought I'd find someone that I trusted enough with all of me. Who'd love Penny as much as they love Spencer. You really don't care if I see you throughout the day as Spencer but then that night I show up to the date and I'm Penny. You smile and kiss me and tell me I'm pretty. But if I show up as Spencer you tell me I'm handsome. I know it's really soon and I know it's crazy but..." Spencer inhaled and rolled in Aaron's arms. So they were face to face. "I love you."

Aaron's heart swelled and he kissed Spencer. He wanted to scream in joy but didn't need Jack to come running to see what was wrong. When he needed to breath, Aaron rested his forehead on Spencer's. "I love you, too. I knew it watching you and Jack. He'd never taken to someone so quick and despite you talking about how you are horrible with kids. You were perfect with Jack."

Spencer hummed and kissed him again. "Do you mind if I shower?"

"No. Go ahead. I'll take care of the bed and then you can get comfortable while I quickly shower."

Aaron checked on Jack after throwing on his boxers. His son was still dead asleep. He stood there watching him for a few minutes before he moved to the bedroom to change out the bed clothes. He threw the dirty ones into the corner and then put new ones on just as the shower stopped. Spencer came out dressed in a pair of sleep pants and a t-shirt. Aaron smiled at him and knew he'd have to work on getting the younger man to sleep in less. 

When he came out of the bathroom in boxers, Aaron found Spencer asleep, curled up in the bed. Turning back to shut off the bathroom light, Aaron saw something purple hanging out of Spencer's bag. He moved over to shove it inside and when he touched silk, he stopped. Pulling out the garment, Aaron inhaled. It was a baby doll nightgown. There was no cup area for breasts so it had to have been made for Spencer. Grabbing a hanger from behind the bathroom door, he hung the nightie on it and hung it on the far wall. There was no way that Spencer would miss seeing it and Aaron wanted to see him in it, as soon as possible.

Aaron moved to the bedroom and laid down, curling around Spencer and holding him close. The younger man stirred and when Aaron hushed him, he settled down quick. Aaron kissed his bare neck and then settled down himself. He needed sleep and the warm body in bed with him was pulling him down to sleep quickly.

 **Two Weeks Later**  
Aaron was standing at the grill, waiting for Spencer or Penny, he wasn't sure. Jack was playing with Henry and talking about the magic tricks that Spencer taught him. Personality wise there was little difference between Spencer and Penny but Spencer tended to do the magic tricks as he was able to hide things in his pants to surprise Jack with. There was also that camera roll rockets were messy and Penny's skirts and dresses were harder to clean. 

"Who is that?" Morgan called out and Aaron turned to see Spencer. The younger man was stopped about twenty feet away from where the BAU team was scattered around three picnics tables, talking and laughing. Enjoying a nice summer day off. Linton hadn't fit in with the team and no one forced him to come to get togethers. Especially when his time with the team was so limited.

Aaron just stood there, waiting. He was going to give Spencer the option. He'd surprised him with this as he thought it was just Aaron and Jack, not the entire BAU team with extended family. JJ had brought Will and Henry of course. Blake's husband, James was there and even Morgan had brought his new girlfriend, Savannah. Aaron looked at Morgan again and saw Savannah. She was looking at Spencer with a little bit of shock on her face. She patted Morgan's arm and then stood up and moved towards Spencer. 

Spencer started and then smiled when he saw the face of the woman walking towards him. Aaron's gut clenched though. Savannah was a Doctor at Bethesda General. For Spencer to know her, it probably wasn't good. 

"Savannah, who is that?" Morgan asked, eying Spencer up and down. 

"This is Doctor Reid. Do you remember the neighbor I told you about?" Savannah asked Spencer who nodded. "This is him, Derek Morgan."

"Agent Morgan, it's wonderful to meet you." Spencer's eyes flicked around the group as Savannah pulled him closer. The noise of the adults drew Jack's attention finally and Aaron watched as the boy debated running up to him or not. He watched emotions pass over Spencer's face he smiled and crouched, letting go of Savannah's arm. Jack smiled and took off at a run to him.

"Spencer!" Jack jumped into Spencer's arms and the younger man stood up, holding him in a tight hug. "I missed you."

"I missed you too, Jack." Spencer rubbed their noses and smiled. 

The entire team, except Dave, was shocked silent. The older profiler smiled and moved over, reaching out to shake Spencer's hand. 

"Spencer, Aaron's told me a lot about you. It's nice to have a face to put with a name."

"Agent Rossi, I don't shake hands." 

Aaron nearly swallowed his own tongue on that, he coughed to cover it up but the whole team heard and looked. He set down the grill tongs and closed the lid. The food wasn't ready yet. 

"I'd like you all to meet my boyfriend, Spencer. Spencer, this is my team." Aaron gave names for those that hadn't introduced themselves. Savannah stayed right there with a worried look on her face. She was looking between him and Spencer.

"I thought..." Garcia looked at Aaron and then mouthed the word Penny. "Bossman?"

"Spencer, I thought you bought a dress for this?" Jack asked before anyone could say anything else.

"I did. But I thought that I might save that for a date night. It's a little fancy for a cookout at the park. Jack, why don't you go and play with Henry." Spencer set him down and Jack took off. "It's okay, Savannah. You don't have to hover. Aaron knows everything."

"He does?" Savannah asked. Spencer smiled and kissed her cheek before he moved over to Aaron. 

"OMG! You are genderfluid!" Garcia nearly screamed. 

"Yes. I go by Penny when I feel like a woman. Since Rossi had brought me up to the team as Penny, Aaron kept calling me that."

"And Bossman didn't tell you that we were all going to be here." Garcia gave him Aaron a little bit of the stink eye for that one. 

"No. He seems to like surprising me. First time it was Jack."

"And how do you know him, Savannah?" Will asked. JJ was tucked into his side and the majority of the team was still seated. 

"I'm sure you can guess, Detective. Savannah treated me in the ER about six months ago. A man took offense to the fact that he hit on me and I had a penis under my dress when I'd not even said two words to him. He groped me and I gave him a black eye." Spencer shuddered and Aaron pulled him closer.

"It took twenty five stitches to take care of the man while all Spencer had was a really bruised hand and a split lip. The first doctor to treat him refused. That's when I stepped in. I was just coming off a near twenty four hour rotation but I couldn't leave him. While I waited for the results of his X-Rays we talked. I met Penny that night and Spencer a week later when he brought me pastries and coffee."

"From the place you like?" Morgan asked.

"He's the one who introduced me to their coffee. I couldn't go back to anything else."

"The pastries are wonderful," Aaron agreed. Spencer turned and tucked his head against Aaron's neck. He could feel the heat and knew that he was blushing. Aaron turned to wrap both arms around him. "Spencer owns the shop."

"Wait I thought Penny worked at the Library of Congress?" JJ asked. 

Spencer chuckled and turned around, not leaving the shelter of Aaron's arms. "I do. I was given the opportunity to buy my favorite coffee shop instead of it closing and I did."

"So forgive me if I get the numbers wrong. Four PhDs and five BAs yes?"

"Yes."

"You work in the Library of Congress and own a coffee shop with all of those degrees?"

"I had PhDs in Mathematics, Engineering, and Chemistry before I was twenty one. I hold BAs in Psychology, Sociology, Philosophy, Astrophysics, and Physics. I finished off my PhD for Human Sexuality before my twenty fifth birthday."

"Hotch, we need him," Morgan said looking at Spencer like he was a prized possession. "Can he replace Linton?"

Aaron looked at the others on the team. "And our relationship?"

"I think I speak for the team when I say, Hotch. That there isn't a thing you wouldn't do to save the lives of your team members, no matter your relationship with them," Will said with a smile on his face. 

Aaron looked at his lover, craning his head to look him in the face. Spencer nodded.

"I went through the academy and the Director of the FBI had me earmarked for the BAU. I just...I couldn't face going to work every single day as Spencer and never as Penny. I tried it at the academy and I didn't like it."

"Reid, there isn't a one of us that gives a crap if you wear a skirt. We also don't care who you sleep with, as long as it's legal." Morgan smiled as he spoke and Aaron couldn't help but chuckle. It was as if all the tension in Spencer's body left at once. He relaxed back into Aaron's arms and settled down. 

Aaron leaned his head down to whisper in Spencer's ear. "I told you they wouldn't care."

"Why do you need him?" James asked as he looked at the team.

"We had a case a few months back. UnSub was leaving clues but the book the clues were out of was old and Hotch had to go to it to get the information we needed. Reid read the damned thing once and was able to give us the clue. Each clue was giving us the abduction date of the next victim. We had no clue on time. That he got with just the abduction times of the previous victims. The UnSub was going through the digits of Pi. He cracked the case with quotes and abduction times. We were able to save the victim before he got away with her and caught him with no loss of life." Morgan glanced at Spencer who Aaron could tell was blushing. "His degrees are right up the alley. Look at what he did with his sciency ones. In our cases time is everything. Anything that makes us able to do our jobs quicker. Hotch, that case with the guy who killed himself to hide his pregnant partner."

Aaron pulled Spencer tighter to him, shuddering. 

"What happened?" Spencer asked, his voice soft. 

"The guy journaled all of his things. Another agent at the time, Prentiss and I read through the journals. We found nothing. Hotch took a turn and found something we'd missed. It was one slip up in hundreds of pages. Everything was singular except that single entry. But at that point it was days later and when we finally found the partner she and her baby were dead. The victim was chained up and couldn't get food for the baby. She sat in room with the dead UnSub and watched as a baby died. We could have gone through the books quicker with Reid there. Hotch says you can read very quickly."

"Twenty thousand words per minute. I also have an eidetic memory and an IQ of 187." Spencer leaned back even more on Aaron, giving him comfort. 

"Daddy, I'm hungry!" Jack called out and Henry chimed in seconds later. All of the adults started to laugh. Aaron turned back to check on the food and caught Morgan's eye. The younger agent was serious. He wanted him on the team. All the cards were on the table and it seemed that the team didn't mind him trying to get Spencer into the BAU. He just had to talk the younger man into it. That was going to be the hard part.

XxXxXxX

Aaron was worried. Just after Jack had passed out on the couch, Spencer had offered to take him to his bedroom and Aaron had agreed. He'd ended up playing football at the park. Morgan, JJ, Henry, and Jack were on one team while Aaron was on the team with James and Will. Spencer sat on the sidelines with Garcia and Blake and talked. Dave was the referee. His lover hadn't come back. 

Jack had been asleep and it shouldn't have taken half an hour to get him back to sleep even if he woke up. Aaron decided he needed to check on his wayward lover. He locked up the apartment as he did. As he neared the bedroom he smelled vanilla and cinnamon. Pushing open the mostly closed bedroom door, he found the room mostly dark. There were electronic candles all over the bed area of the room, lighting up the bed. Spencer though was nowhere to be seen. He did notice the oil reeds on the side of the dresser in the far corner. 

Aaron moved to the closed bathroom door and tried it but it was locked. "Spencer?"

"Go lay down, Aaron. I'll be out in a moment." Spencer's voice sounded normal but Aaron wasn't too sure about what was going on in there. "Naked." 

Aaron's mouth went dry with that. Spencer liked sex, yes. Aaron liked sex with Spencer but this was the first time that the younger man had started anything. Aaron quickly stripped out of his clothes and hung up what needed hung, the rest went into the hamper. He stopped then and looked around the room. He'd not noticed that there were so many of Spencer's things in the room. A stack of books on the taller dresser. The nightstand on Spencer's side was filled with things that were not Aaron's. The most telling was on the small desk in the corner. Spencer wrote to his mother every day and there was his notepad and pen, the stack of already addressed envelopes. This wasn't Aaron's bedroom anymore. It was Aaron and Spencer's. It was their bedroom and it made him happy as he laid down on his side on the bed, facing the bathroom. 

Five minutes later, the bathroom door opened and Aaron looked up but the light was out. He couldn't see his lover. When Spencer stepped out of the bathroom, Aaron's jaw dropped. Penny was standing there in the nightie. It had stayed hung up since that first night. Neither of them mentioned it. Aaron sat up, moving to sit on the edge of the bed. Penny had done up her hair in the tight ringlets that Aaron loved. 

"Hi," Penny said, shyly. She had a hold of the bottom of the nightie with one hand, pulling it down. The other hand touched her glasses. Aaron smiled and twirled a finger. A blush started on Penny's face but she did what he asked. The silky cloth just covered the downward swell of her ass cheeks. He couldn't stay there. With her back to him, Aaron stopped just close enough that she had to feel his heat and then he ran a hand down her back. She shivered. He reached underneath the gown and found that not only had Penny done her hair but the slickness told him she was ready for him. 

"You look stunning," Aaron said as he took a hold of one of Penny's shoulders and spun her around. He started to kiss her as his hands traveled down her back to cup her ass and lift her up. She wrapped her legs around his waist and Aaron started to walked them backwards to the bed. The sight of her in the nightie was too much. He needed to be inside of her as soon as possible. He sat them down on the edge of the bed before he started to kiss down her neck. That's when he smelled the honeysuckle. 

The smell of her and the feel of the silk on his skin had Aaron more than ready for her. Penny though shoved at him until he laid down, her legs slipping from around him. She smiled as she shifted a little and then was rubbing along his cock. She knew exactly what she was doing to him. 

"Penny...fuck." Aaron arched up into her body as she thrust against him. He trailed a hand underneath the nightie, skirting her sex and going for a nipple. It was already hard and he rolled it between his fingers as her movements stuttered. This was the first time that he was having sex with Penny. She shifted again and then his cock was rubbing at her center. She moaned and ground down onto him hard. 

"Do you want to fuck my cunt Aaron?" Penny asked, her voice just a breathy whisper. Aaron groaned and shot up, gripping her hips and kissing her again. She shifted to her knees. Reaching back, she lubed him up with something then guided him to her entrance and Aaron moaned as he slid inside of her heat. She was so hot around him. So hot and so tight.

The kissing lasted for several minutes as she slid up and down his hard length before she pushed him back down and started to ride him harder. Aaron's hands stayed at her hips, rubbing at sensitive skin. The feel of skin under his palms and silk that brushed his skin was heady and Aaron wanted to remember this for the rest of his life. He let her dictate what she wanted. If she wanted him to thrust, she'd have to ask.

Penny's ringlets were bouncing with every movement and it made her all the more beautiful. The only sounds were slapping flesh, breathy moans, and pants. Several minutes later, Aaron could hear the hitch in her breathing that meant that she was close. He pushed himself up again so that he could kiss her through her orgasm. His hand brushed her sex and she clenched around him. Aaron was happy he was kissing her as she screamed her orgasm, the sound was caught in his mouth and it didn't wake Jack. A few more thrusts and Aaron was following her. As he released inside of her, she melted down onto him. She was entirely limp and Aaron smiled as he held her close. 

"I love you, Penny." Aaron tipped her head back to kiss her and she lazily kissed him back. He was tired as well. Today had been stressful and tiring. 

“I love you, too.” 

Aaron smiled as he lifted up at Penny, sliding out of her. A subtle push and she was standing up and smiling even harder at him. He drew her into the bathroom and helped her clean up. The nightie was all dirty so she stripped it off but that’s when Aaron noticed that the original one was still on the hanger. Penny slipped it on as she brushed past him out to the bedroom after she cleaned up some. Aaron quickly washed himself up in the sink and rushed to the bed. Penny was on her side of the bed. She was facing him with a blissed out look on her face. Aaron got under the covers and she tucked herself up against him. 

This he could live with for the rest of his life.

 **Four Months Later**  
Aaron smiled as he watched Penny enter the bullpen. She was dressed in a skirt and very nice blouse and instead of her normal flats she wore a pair of converse on her feet, today's color was red. One of the only things that carried over from Spencer. Today was the first day of her probation period on the team. Cruz had been hesitant at first but after meeting Penny he’d agreed to a two month probation on the team. The team had helped him and Penny move into a large house that had been split into two apartments. It had been perfect for them. One side was very much Aaron’s and the other was Penny’s but no one but the team needed to know that Penny’s bedroom rarely got used for sleeping. Sex yes. It was fun to slip away during the day and have sex where Jack couldn’t hear but could still get to them if he needed them. 

The secondary bedroom on Penny’s side was set up as her office/library. The two living rooms were used pretty much equally. Aaron’s was set up like a normal living room while Penny’s had bean bags and some kind of large nest thing that was comfortable as hell and a wicker chair that was soft and was where Penny usually was when she was home alone. Aaron had come home to her sleeping in the chair with a book on her chest many a time. Spencer preferred the couch when he was reading and he’d come back to find him dead asleep there many times as well. 

Vinton was happy to be free of the unit. He had thought he would do well with the crimes but his mounting stress with the cases proved again that not everyone was cut out for the BAU. The training that Penny had gone through had shown a grasp of the subject matter that few ever had. Cruz had been a little worried at her ability to look at every single case with a scientific eye. Her emotional responses were there on her face but when she spoke of cases and wrote them up, it was very science minded. He’d remarked that if he hadn’t seen the team out to eat with Spencer after his quick refresher at the academy, he’d have thought he was a robot. 

There was also the fact that Penny had been given three cold cases to prove to her that not all cases could be solved. The bad thing was that she’d solved two of them. That had been a kick to the pants for the unit. One had been a case of Dave’s from long before it had become a team effort. The other had been a case from when Aaron himself had been lead profiler. The third case had the desired effect, Penny had worked through figuring out a case couldn’t be solved before entering the unit. She called the case a Kobayashi Maru scenario. 

The team was adjusting well to how varied Spencer and Penny were. A few people at the academy, men and women alike, had tried to hassle Spencer as word had gotten out that he was Genderfluid. He’d stayed Spencer through the refresher just to make it easy with bunking and restrooms and such but on his off time he became Penny a great deal. 

Aaron’s cell phone ringing drew his gaze from Penny who was now setting up her desk to the object. It was the CARD team leader for the Maine area. 

“Hotchner.” Aaron listened as the case was laid out. They had four kids taken from a mall in Augusta. All at the same time an hour before. Two boys and two girls ages four, five, eight, and nine. “We are wheels up in twenty minutes. I have eyes on my entire team.”

“Hotch?” JJ asked as she stepped close to him. 

“We have four children abductions in Augusta, Maine. Garcia the CARD team will be forwarding you all the information they have as we fly. Send it to our tablets. Reid, we’ll print you our papers on sight. We need to get to the jet now.”

Aaron turned to his office to grab his things and call to have the jet prepped. He grabbed his go bag as well as Penny's. She's dropped it off days ago along with the one for Spencer. He hadn't had as much trouble separating the two in his mind. He was sure that a shrink would love to get their hands on his mind. He had no trouble changing gears quickly on who greeted him when he woke up. It worked for them. He could also tell that Penny was blossoming with their relationship. She was coming out of her shell more and more.

Psychologically, Aaron knew that Spencer and Penny were the same person. There was no difference in how much he loved him or her. Each was a different side of the same coin. There was a lot between them that was the same. He never treated Penny like she was fragile. She was a woman yes but she wasn't weak. There was no way that Penny or Spencer could ever be weak and Aaron thought that was why he loved them so much. 

Aaron had his favorite things about each one though. For Penny is was the honeysuckle perfume she wore. He didn't know what it was about it but it smelled so wonderful on him. The way it clung to their pillows, even when Spencer was asleep next to him, gave him comfort. For Spencer, his favorite thing was his laugh. When Aaron or Jack could get him to laugh. The first few times that the younger man had laughed so completely that he'd nearly fallen over, Aaron figured out that he hadn't laughed much growing up and it was his goal to make him laugh for the rest of their lives.

The team was waiting at the elevator and Aaron was a little shocked to see a strap of something over Penny's back. She turned to him and smiled as he handed over her bag and he saw that it was a messenger bag. It wasn't the one that Spencer used. This was roughly the same size but it was some kind of canvas fabric in a light blue color. It was very nice looking. 

"Do you like it, Hotch?" Penny asked. She smiled at JJ and Blake. "The girls got it as a present for me. To welcome me to the team."

"And us guys got her a giftcard to Starbucks since she won't be able to get her normal brew on cases," Dave said with a smile. 

"And Rossi won't tell me how much is on there," Penny pouted as she stepped into the elevator. Aaron laughed and pressed the button for the ground floor. The rest of the team chuckled as well. This was going to be the last happiness they had until the kids were found, for good or for ill. He wasn't going to put a stop to it until after the jet had taken off. For the first time in a long while, the team felt like a family.  
**The End**


End file.
